(MENAFN) A Sudanese military cargo aircraft went down late Tuesday in West Kordofan state, southern Sudan, the army reported.

According to a military statement, the plane “suffered a technical malfunction in its right wing, which led to a loss of balance and caused it to catch fire.” The aircraft crashed tens of kilometers west of the army’s local position.

The aircraft had been conducting a mission to airdrop supplies to its field units in the besieged city of Babanusa, where government forces are engaged in fighting with the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the statement said.

“All crew members were killed in the incident,” the army added, without specifying their number.

Earlier Tuesday, the RSF claimed it had shot down a military aircraft after alleged attacks on its forces in the region.

In recent days, the Sudanese army has been airdropping supplies to support its troops in Babanusa, which has faced repeated assaults by the RSF.

The three Kordofan states—North, West, and South—have recently seen intense clashes between the Sudanese army and the RSF.

The rebel group also seized El-Fasher, the capital of North Darfur state, on Oct. 26, carrying out massacres of civilians, local and international organizations reported. Analysts warned the takeover could solidify a geographic division of the war-torn country.

Since April 2023, fighting between the Sudanese army and the RSF has escalated into a full-scale civil war, leaving thousands dead, millions displaced, and triggering one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.

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